Stay Curious. Stay Connected.
MailNewsletters♡Donate Now
Sign up
*Password must be at least 8 characters and contain one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number and one symbol.
Already have an account?
By submitting, you consent that you are at least 18 years of age and to receive information about MPR's or APMG entities' programs and offerings. The personally identifying information you provide will not be sold, shared, or used for purposes other than to communicate with you about MPR, APMG entities, and its sponsors. You may opt-out at any time clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email communication. View our Privacy Policy.
Sign in to your profile
Forgot Password?
New to MPR News?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Reset Password

Enter the username on file and we'll send you a code to reset your password.

Still require assistance or not sure what your User Name is?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Email Verification

A verification code has been emailed to

Still awaiting the code?
MinnEcon Blog
Paul Tosto

MN jobless data: What will this week bring?

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Conflicting reports the past few weeks about Minnesota's jobs picture have us more than curious to read Thursday's state unemployment update.

Forbes recently put the Twin Cities as among the best job markets in the country.

At the same time, Minnesota state economists have been cautioning us that it will be mid-2013 before our state recoups the number of jobs lost in the Great Recession.

Thursday's data on Minnesota unemployment for December will give us a better picture of which path we're on.

The widely watched unemployment rate's held fairly steady during the fall at around 7.1 percent.

While that's a lot better than the U.S., there continue to be worrisome signs. Maybe the biggest concern: our steady numbers seem to be less about job creation and more about people leaving the labor force.

We'll be looking for an uptick in the labor force, which has fallen by more than 30,000 since the spring.

We'll also be looking to see if the state added jobs. That's been a roller coaster the past few months.

September data, for instance, saw the state shed nearly 10,000 jobs from the prior month.

A month later, state officials trumpeted a 14,000 October job gain.

In November, though, the state was losing jobs again -- down 5,100 from October.

The state experts say Minnesota needs to produce about 2,000 jobs a month to simply keep pace. They've noted, "this slower pace of job creation ... over the next 6 to 12 months will continue to make it very difficult to put the state's unemployed, displaced, and underutilized workers back to work promptly."

That was from November. We'll get a better sense Thursday of how that forecast is playing out.

Help us get a jump on the data. Tell us what the jobs market is like around you. Seeing signs that things are improving? Post something below or contact us directly at MinnEcon.

___________________________

Help Us Cover This Story

Know something more about the issues or people in this post? Share your expertise directly with Minnesota Public Radio News.

[image]